Army, Bengal govt to study army's land requirement

This was decided at the annual Civil Military Liaison Conference (CMLC) attended by the West Bengal administration's top bureaucrats and senior army officers of Army Eastern Command here at Headquarters Bengal Area in Kolkata.

The annually held CMLC, hosted alternately by the state administration and army, lasted nearly 90-minutes. It was co-chaired by West Bengal Chief Secretary Sanjay Mitra and General Officer Commanding, Bengal Area, Lt Gen Raman Dhawan which was also attended by West Bengal Home Secretary Basudeb Banerjee and Commisioner of Kolkata Police Surajit Kar Purakayastha.

The aim of the meeting was to mutually resolve issues relating to the army's requirement for land at various locations in the state for strategic and national security needs including addressing issues of ex-servicemen (ESM) welfare among other things.

The meet ended on a cordial note with both sides agreeing to remain pro-actively involved in all matters that will help enhance the synergy between the armed forces and the civil administration in the State.

Earlier, on February Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal Government granted 250 acres for a new military station at Nabagram in the Murshidabad district.

The foundation stone of Berhampore Military Station (BMS) was laid by President Pranab Mukherjee which marked the beginning of the Army's capability enhancement drive in Bengal.

It has been learnt that The BMS will be home to an Air Defence (AD) regiment.

Air defence missiles will be kept ready to protect the airspace over the narrow Siliguri corridor that connects the northeastern states to the rest of the country.

Rs. 600 crore has been earmarked for this station that will be completed by 2018.

Reporting by: Susanta Das